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Snowden could be granted asylum in Switzerland in order to testify against NSA

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Re: Snowden could be granted asylum in Switzerland in order to testify against NSA

#21

Post by lotsofmangos »

jacquesm wrote: post #16
saalweachter wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Give Russia some time; they're working on reducing the number of countries between them and Switzerland.

East-Ukraine is not between Russia and Switzerland on any conceivable flight path and West-Ukraine barely so. But that was a funny comment.

Depends where in Russia you leave from, Russia is big.

A great circle from Moscow to Zurich passes through Belarus, Poland, Czech Republic and Germany, however if you went from Volgograd to Zurich you would go straight through eastern Ukraine.

Re: Snowden could be granted asylum in Switzerland in order to testify against NSA

#22

Post by jacquesm »

lotsofmangos wrote: post #21
jacquesm wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

East-Ukraine is not between Russia and Switzerland on any conceivable flight path and West-Ukraine barely so. But that was a funny comment.

Depends where in Russia you leave from, Russia is big. A great circle from Moscow to Zurich passes through Belarus, Poland, Czech Republic and Germany, however if you went from Volgograd to Zurich you would go straight through eastern Ukraine.

I don't think there is currently any commercial carrier that sends its planes over Eastern Ukraine. Not any commercial carrier that wishes to remain in business.

Re: Snowden could be granted asylum in Switzerland in order to testify against NSA

#23

Post by spacefight »

DominikR wrote: post #15
sfk wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

He can also fly Aeroflot. Highly unlikely to be ordered down by anyone.

Multiple Aeroflot machines with Russian officials on board that were on they way home have been forced to land in EU countries because of sanctions. The only plane that probably would be safe is the Russian presidential plane.

Hmm... Morales' plane coming to mind.

Re: Snowden could be granted asylum in Switzerland in order to testify against NSA

#24

Post by lotsofmangos »

jacquesm wrote: post #22
lotsofmangos wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Depends where in Russia you leave from, Russia is big. A great circle from Moscow to Zurich passes through Belarus, Poland, Czech Republic and Germany, however if you went from Volgograd to Zurich you would go straight through eastern Ukraine.

I don't think there is currently any commercial carrier that sends its planes over Eastern Ukraine. Not any commercial carrier that wishes to remain in business.

Right now, according to Flightradar24, there are airliners from Dniproavia, Metrojet, Yamal Airlines and Air Moldova flying across eastern Ukraine. They are mostly going across the north of East Ukraine apart from Dniproavia, which may yet swing north, but it isn't as though airlines are avoiding the whole of eastern Ukraine.

Re: Snowden could be granted asylum in Switzerland in order to testify against NSA

#25

Post by saosebastiao »

This is a major political power maneuver. As long as Snowden is in Russia, Obama can control the messaging. He is, after all, cooperating with an important physical threat to, if not outright enemy of the United States. Asylum in Switzerland, along with all the mental associations with its neutrality and sovereignty, puts Obama in a much trickier position. Probably not enough to turn the tide, but it forces Obama to address the situation with a subset of his constituents who are not as easily convinced by "Murica is Awesome!" style arguments.

Re: Snowden could be granted asylum in Switzerland in order to testify against NSA

#26

Post by gambiting »

spacefight wrote: post #23
DominikR wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Multiple Aeroflot machines with Russian officials on board that were on they way home have been forced to land in EU countries because of sanctions. The only plane that probably would be safe is the Russian presidential plane.

Hmm... Morales' plane coming to mind.

Yeah but then again what was Morales going to do about it? Get a little bit angry? That decision was literally consequence-free. I highly doubt anyone would order Putin's plane to land anywhere though. Just like no one would order the air force one to land forcibly, it's just not done.

Re: Snowden could be granted asylum in Switzerland in order to testify against NSA

#27

Post by joesmo »

jacquesm wrote: post #3
gambiting wrote: post #2

I wonder if Russia would let him go if Switzerland did really grant him an Asylum.

Of course they will. How he will get there is another matter, he'll have to cross at least two other countries and we've already seen a plane ordered down in order for it to be searched. Whether some nation in the flightpath from Russia to Switzerland would have the required fortitude to do that to a plane owned by the Swiss government is another matter entirely. Pissing off Bolivia is probably a mild '2' in internat…

I'm quite sure every NATO or EU nation between Russia and Switzerland would order the plane to land at the behest of the US.

Re: Snowden could be granted asylum in Switzerland in order to testify against NSA

#28

Post by jacquesm »

lotsofmangos wrote: post #24
jacquesm wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't think there is currently any commercial carrier that sends its planes over Eastern Ukraine. Not any commercial carrier that wishes to remain in business.

Right now, according to Flightradar24, there are airliners from Dniproavia, Metrojet, Yamal Airlines and Air Moldova flying across eastern Ukraine. They are mostly going across the north of East Ukraine apart from Dniproavia, which may yet swing north, but it isn't as though airlines are avoiding the whole of eastern Ukraine.

The 'contested' area is completely free from planes right now.

Re: Snowden could be granted asylum in Switzerland in order to testify against NSA

#29

Post by jacquesm »

gambiting wrote: post #26
spacefight wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hmm... Morales' plane coming to mind.

Yeah but then again what was Morales going to do about it? Get a little bit angry? That decision was literally consequence-free. I highly doubt anyone would order Putin's plane to land anywhere though. Just like no one would order the air force one to land forcibly, it's just not done.

'land or we'll start World War III'.

Re: Snowden could be granted asylum in Switzerland in order to testify against NSA

#30

Post by lotsofmangos »

jacquesm wrote: post #28
lotsofmangos wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Right now, according to Flightradar24, there are airliners from Dniproavia, Metrojet, Yamal Airlines and Air Moldova flying across eastern Ukraine. They are mostly going across the north of East Ukraine apart from Dniproavia, which may yet swing north, but it isn't as though airlines are avoiding the whole of eastern Ukraine.

The 'contested' area is completely free from planes right now.

Ok, if by Russia, you mean Moscow and by eastern Ukraine, you mean south-eastern Ukraine, apart from Crimea, then you are right.

Apart from M99551 from Motor Sich Airlines, which is headed to Kharkiv.

edit - actually it looks as though it is going past Kharkiv as it is still climbing.

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